Before the first shift
The stuff nobody tells youSigning up, credits, and when to buy tools.
Three things need to be true before the first shift: your child is registered, the credits are counted, and nobody has bought tools yet. Here's how each one works, plus the trades BC needs.
Official registration
Get registered with SkilledTradesBC
Every apprentice in BC has to be registered with SkilledTradesBC (formerly the ITA). Your child gets an Apprentice ID, the “Blue Book” number. It's a licence in progress, and it's the only reason their hours count. The district Career Programs Coordinator opens the registration for you. Employer and student both sign the form. Unsigned, the hours don't count.Source: SkilledTradesBC, Register as an apprentice, opens in a new tab
Registration checklist
Registration Status
0%
0 of 6 steps confirmed.
Paste the email template into your preferred client and send it to the district coordinator. Edit the bracketed fields before sending.
Double credit
Get paid in credits too
Your child doesn't have to choose between graduating and starting a trade. Both paths below earn high school credits at the same time as the trade does.Source: SkilledTradesBC, Youth TRAIN in Trades, opens in a new tabSource: BC Ministry of Education and Child Care, Graduation Program: external and dual credit, opens in a new tab
Youth Train in Trades
High school credits plus Level 1 college technical training
16-24 credits
Who pays: Available while your child is still a secondary student
Value: Four to six electives, and the first technical level finished before graduation
Youth Work in Trades
High school credits plus 900 paid apprenticeship hours
16 credits
Who pays: A registered SkilledTradesBC apprentice with a sponsoring employer
Value: Eligibility to apply for the Youth WORK scholarship with a C+ average, plus a wage
16-24
Youth TRAIN credits
16
Youth WORK credits
40-50%
Of the 80 credits to graduate
Three things to do: book the counsellor meeting in grade ten, seats and timetable space go fast, and grade eleven is often too late. Ask in writing which course codes earn the credits, so they land on the transcript. Then check the transcript every term; don't assume the credits posted; ours needed a nudge.
A Dogwood diploma takes 80 credits. Between Youth TRAIN and Youth WORK, your child can earn 32 to 40 of them on a job site or in a college shop.
Tools
Wait
Tools are the cost that worries parents most, and the easiest one to get wrong. Wait for the instructor's list, buy through the college discount channel, ask about a union allowance, and keep every receipt.
Wait for the instructor's list
Buying early is the most common money mistake parents make: wrong specs, full retail price. The list comes from the instructor, and it's worth waiting for.
Use the college Student Discount List
BCIT, VCC and UAPIC all run one. Forty to fifty percent off professional-grade tools with a student ID.
Ask about brand student programs
Milwaukee, Snap-On and others run student pricing. It goes through the program, not the retail counter.
Ask about a tool allowance first
Many unions and employers provide a tool allowance or a starter kit. Ask before you shop, not after.
Keep every receipt
A shoebox of them becomes a tax deduction later, under the Tradespersons' Tool Deduction.
The federal grant is gone; the BC credit replaced it
The federal Apprenticeship Incentive and Completion Grants ended on 31 March 2025. In BC, apprentices who would have received them now get an extra $500 per level through the provincial training tax credit. It is separate from the Youth WORK in Trades scholarship, and it stacks with tool tax deductions and union allowances.
Union Tool Allowances & Starter Kits
Many BC unions, including IBEW, UA and BCRCC, offer tool allowances, starter kits or group purchasing for apprentices. A sponsored apprentice often gets better pricing and exact guidance on what to buy. Ask the employer and union hall before spending anything.
Federal Apprentice Tool Tax Deduction
Apprentices can deduct the cost of tools required for the job that the employer doesn't reimburse. The deduction applies to tools bought to earn apprenticeship income, and CRA rules limit the amount. Keep receipts, record the trade, and talk to a tax preparer at the end of the first tax year.Source: Canada Revenue Agency, Line 22900, tradesperson and apprentice tool deduction, opens in a new tab
Labour Market Outlook
WorkBC high-opportunity trades
These are the trades that WorkBC identifies as high opportunity in the current outlook. High opportunity means more choice of employer, better wage pressure, and more room to move for the graduate.Source: WorkBC, BC Labour Market Outlook, opens in a new tab
Electricians
6,000 hours to Red Seal
Construction, industrial and maintenance electricians remain on every BC high-opportunity list. The Red Seal is portable and the union pathway is well established.
Heavy Duty Equipment Mechanics
6,000 hours to Red Seal
Diesel and heavy-equipment techs power BC mining, forestry, transportation and municipal fleets. The credential is becoming a prerequisite for dealer-level work.
Carpenters
6,720 hours to Red Seal
Mass timber, residential, commercial and concrete formwork keep carpentry at the centre of BC construction demand. A union ticket adds scale and pension portability.
Plumbers / Steamfitters
6,000 hours to Red Seal
Plumbing, gasfitting, sprinkler and pipe trades combine steady service work with major industrial projects. Multi-trade flexibility increases employability.
Welders
4,500 hours to Red Seal
From shipyards to industrial fabrication to infrastructure, welders reach Red Seal faster than most trades and the ticket travels across provinces.
Demand is not destiny.
The best trade is the one that fits the student’s aptitude, location and long-term plan. Use WorkBC data as one input, not the only input.
Take it with you
One-page Parent Checklist (PDF)
One page you can print and stick on the fridge: how to get registered with SkilledTradesBC, what to do to earn the double credits, when to buy tools, the BC labour laws that apply if your child is under 18, and the federal programs worth knowing about. Written parent-to-parent.
Next step
Find your district coordinator
The coordinator is the person who turns all this into a seat, registration and graduation plan. Send the meeting request today.
Where this comes from
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from one of these. Rules and dollar amounts change, so check the original before you act on it.
- Register as an apprentice (opens in a new tab)
SkilledTradesBC
Apprentice ID, sponsorship and work-based training hour reporting.
- Youth TRAIN in Trades (opens in a new tab)
SkilledTradesBC
Level 1 technical training at a college while still in secondary school.
- Youth WORK in Trades Scholarship (opens in a new tab)
SkilledTradesBC
900 reported paid hours, C+ average, competitive application as of July 2024.
- Graduation Program: external and dual credit (opens in a new tab)
BC Ministry of Education and Child Care
How trades training credits are reported toward the graduation diploma.
- Line 22900, tradesperson and apprentice tool deduction (opens in a new tab)
Canada Revenue Agency
Deduction for eligible tools bought by apprentices and tradespeople.
- BC Labour Market Outlook (opens in a new tab)
WorkBC
Provincial job-opening projections by occupation.
Keep going
Where to look next
Trades terms, in plain language
A simple glossary of the jargon parents hear from schools, unions and employers.
OpenThe money, and why a union helps
The WRK scholarship, tax credits and union sponsorship.
OpenFrom a Red Seal to a degree
How a Red Seal converts into university credit at TRU, BCIT and UFV.
OpenSafety on the job
Orientation duties, the Three Rights and age-gate law.
Open